The rise of Field Medical – vision vs. reality

The biopharma industry is putting more value on healthcare-provider centric models. The increasing complexity of medicines, of the healthcare and reimbursement systems that surround medicines and the constraints on overt promotion of medicines all mean that the focus is shifting away from Sales towards a deeper understanding-of, and providing-for the prescribers’ needs.

It’s here that Field Medical roles – like the Medical Scientific Liaison (MSL) - really shine.

HCPs expect and need a high level of medical understanding. (When you consider the rise in clinical trial numbers, and an increase in their complexity, it’s no surprise that 86% of oncologists and haematologists agree that their need for medical information will increase in the future.²)

Field Medical associates have the skills to convey this scientific data with impact and thereby build trusted, high-value, long-lasting scientific partnerships with HCPs. Typically, an MSL engagement lasts 45 minutes. This is in stark contrast to a Sales call which lasts, on average, less than 2 minutes.²

So, with bold statements being made, such as: “The MSL is now, arguably, the most influential role in the pharmaceutical industry”, it’s easy to assume that the future is unequivocally MSL focused.¹

But the reality is that this isn’t playing-out on the ground to the extent you might imagine.

There is still an uncomfortable industry favouritism towards commercial Key Account Managers (KAMs) and other sales-focused teams.

Consider in your organisation which team gets more attention…more training…more support? (A disturbing 19% of MSLs said they had had no coaching conversations with their managers over the last 12 months.³)

This is because the traditional framework for measuring value in pharma still holds true: incentivising Sales. This is invariably linked to the performance of the medicine in the market – a metric which can’t be linked to the typically non-promotional role of the Field Medical associate.

As the KAM remains the necessity in an account, the gap between the profile of an MSL and a KAM may start to erode. A potentially damaging situation, whereby attention needs to be given to maintain the working relationship and a clear compliant distinction between both field teams. Without this credibility, the value to both the customer and business diminishes.

Furthermore, as customers have an increasing need to engage with multiple field members, the desired seamless customer journey is, in fact, becoming more fragmented. Digital touchpoints are adding to this chaos, resulting in confusion and further decreasing the integrity of the engagement with the company.

And focusing in on digital touchpoints exposes another challenge.

MSLs have the responsibility to distribute vast amounts of highly technical data to increasingly tech savvy customers. The information needs to be quickly sourced, recalled, and presented with clarity.

A mammoth task for a Field Medical associate to do digitally.

At LUCENT, we are partnering with biotech and pharmaceutical organisations to implement digital medical and field medical solutions helping to uncover the full potential of your medical department. 

Read more about our Field Medical capabilities or reach out to us today.

References:

¹ PharmaPhorum 2022. Accessed Feb 2023. https://pharmaphorum.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Pharmas-New-Frontier-v2.pdf
² Clarity. Accessed Feb 2023. https://clarityes1.com/blog/msl-and-kam-coordination/
³ PharmaPhorum 2022. Accessed Feb 2023. https://pharmaphorum.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/60Seconds-A4-Whitepaper-Empowering-MSLs-AW.pdf

Get in touch

Related Articles